The South Korean Embassy in Manila has suspended issuing visas to Filipino overseas workers because of extortions against South Korean expatriates here by corrupt Filipino immigration officers, reported local newspaper Philippine Daily Inquirer on Monday.
The officials of the South Korean Embassy also hinted actions might be taken against an estimated 15,000 undocumented overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in South Korean if harassment and extortion by immigration officials against Korean nationals here is not stopped by the government.
The report quoted Consul General Hong Sung Mog of the South Korean Embassy as saying that the embassy was forced to stop issuing visas to Korea-bound Filipino workers starting Monday because of "enormous pressure" from the local Korean community, which he said was in "commotion" because of extortions by immigration officers.
The South Korean community in the Philippines might lobby the government in Seoul to act against the OFWs in South Korea who have extended their stay without proper documents, the report quoted Hong as saying.
Some 80,000 South Korean residents are living in the Philippines and some 600,000 South Korean tourists visit the archipelago every year.
Some 200 Filipino workers apply for working visas with the South Korean Embassy every day. The embassy would continue processing the 100 tourist visa applications it receives daily, according to the report.
Source: Xinhua
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